Gowda family's assets worth over Rs 1,500 cr: BJP

Taking the fight to the Janata Dal-Secular camp, a combative Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday released what it called the "charge-sheet" against the opposition party, alleging that the estimated worth of the known assets of the family of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda alone was over Rs 1,500 crore.

The 55-page booklet, the party said, attempts to provide a snapshot of the "large-scale amassment" of wealth and assets by JDS supremo Deve Gowda, also a former Karnataka chief minister and his family members.

"It also briefly brings out the irregularities committed by them to acquire such wealth. The list of assets cited in this booklet is only indicative, and by no means gives a complete picture of the actual wealth of the Gowda family", it said.

The "charge-sheet" was released by BJP national spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman, in the presence of president of the state unit K S Eshwarappa and the Miniser for Energy Shobha Karandlaje, among others, at a press conference in Bengaluru.

Sitaraman said the BJP found it necessary to release it as the "frustrated" opposition had been repeatedly leveling "false allegations" against the first BJP government in south, and was not allowing it to function.

She said the state government was spending majority of its time to answer "false allegations" against it. "It is very disheartening," she said.

The booklet has "credible and substantive evidence" on the misdeeds of the Deve Gowda family, she said.

Meanwhile, later in the day H D Deve Gowda dared the B S Yeddyurappa government to seek a CBI probe into their assets.

"Let Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, if he has guts, order a CBI investigation into our assets. Let the truth come out and guilty punished", a visibly angry Gowda told reporters hours after the BJP released the 'chargesheet' accusing his family of owning Rs 1,500 crore worth of wealth.

Gowda, who yesterday staged a dharna in front of Yeddyurappa's official residence protesting "non-release" of funds for development works in his Hassan parliamentary constituency, said, "They (BJP) have power. Who prevented them from ordering a probe?"